A KEY ally of Kevin Rudd says the outgoing prime minister will remain in parliament as the member for Griffith, despite calls from senior Labor figures for him to quit.

Mr Rudd was re-elected in his Brisbane seat on Saturday, but announced he would stand down as Labor leader after the party's election defeat.

He hasn't spoken publicly since conceding defeat to Tony Abbott on Saturday night, and it remained unclear whether he'd stick with Labor in opposition.

But outgoing Labor minister and Rudd supporter Kim Carr has confirmed the former prime minister will stay for the three-year term.

Mr Carr has told the ABC's 7.30 program there's no desire for a by-election in Griffith, and Mr Rudd had a "a great contribution to make".

Earlier, one of Julia Gillard's closest allies launched an attack on Mr Rudd and called for him to resign from parliament "in the best interests of the party".

Craig Emerson, a former Cabinet minister and one-time boyfriend of Ms Gillard's, blamed Mr Rudd for the weekend election "disaster".

The now retired MP launched a scorching critique of Mr Rudd, blaming him for leaking against the former PM during the 2010 election - after he had been torn down by Labor's Caucus.

"Anyone who does that, who is so hellbent on revenge, who is so destructive as to depress the Labor vote in the 2010 election shouldn't be rewarded for that sort of behaviour," Dr Emerson told the ABC's 7.30 program.

"He came back as prime minister, the election was a disaster for Labor.

"And Kevin Rudd's continuing presence in the parliamentary Labor Party will see him do what he has always done, and that is willingly, wilfully, recklessly, destabilise Labor leaders.

"It is in the best interests of the party for Kevin Rudd to leave the parliament."